Davie Wong
Sports Editor

 

fter a 5-5-2 season, the National

Championships is the last place I’d
expect to see the Douglas College Royals’
men’s soccer team. However, after a late
season surge saw them taking gold at the
PACWEST Provincial Championships,
the Royals have established themselves
as a late season surprise. Going into the
tournaments, I had the Royals as Bronze
underdogs, but what happened was truly
astounding.

The first match of the tournament
saw the Royals take on the Algonquin
Thunder. A choppy first 45 minutes
saw both saw sides trade chances, but
nothing of quality. It wasn’t until the
65th minute that either team broke the
ice. A nearly direct free kick gave the
Royals the opportunity to go up on the
board. Specialist free kick taker Eric
Ray was called up to take the shot. Ray

Building for the future

»

Surfing to Silver

> Royals men’s soccer dazzle at Nationals

made no mistake, slamming the ball into
the top corner of the net and giving the
Royals the lead.

But the football zebras giveth,
and they taketh away. In a mirror
opportunity on the other side of the
field, the Thunder tied the game. After
go minutes, it remained tied 1-1. Extra
time was exciting but solved nothing,
and just like that, we were headed for
penalties.

The Royals shooters knew exactly
how to score, and did so with ease. On
the other side of the field, the Thunder
had Ryo Mizuno to beat. The Japanese
international keeper made two diving
saves to earn the Royals the win. Quinn
Dawson was named player of the match
for the Royals, but I think everyone
knew who the best player on the field for
the Royals was.

The semi-finals pitted the Royals
against the Keyano Huskies. The
Huskies played well but couldn't get
anything going against the aggressive

> Royals women’s soccer fall short at Nationals

Davie Wong
Sports Editor

 

eading into the CCAA National

Championships, I had the Royals
slated for Bronze favourites, due to their
tough group draw. Being drawn in the
same group as the three time defending
champions is bad for any team’s health
in a double elimination competition.

As expected, their first match
against the NAIT Ooks was a difficult
one. A first half full of nerves and
broken plays saw neither side able to
grab an edge. But after halftime, it
was like a whole new game. The field
opened up for both teams. The Ooks
had a couple of beautiful chances, but
Alexa Gazzola stole the show with
brilliant saves to keep the Royals in the
game. Moments later, Martina Pettenon
would convert on an opportunity for the
Royals to give them the lead. Her goal
would stand as the game winner as the
Royals guided their lead to a win. For
her role in helping the Royals stay afloat,
Michelle Wessa was named the player of
the game.

Next up were the dreaded Elans de
Garneau. The Quebec giants had made
a name for themselves throughout the
years, and it was always going to be a
challenge upsetting them. Playing some
of their best football this season, the
Royals showed that they were more than
ready to take on the giants of Quebec.

An exciting first half of action saw both
keepers called upon to make big saves
to keep the scored time going into
halftime.

As the Royals do, their offence
continued to press Garneau’s defence in
the second half. However, they couldn't
find the openings that they needed. Just
as the match looked to be heading into
extra time, Garneau found their goal.

A speedy Judy Gagnon slipped past the
Royals and delivered the game winner.
The Royals were unable to recover, and
dropped the game 1-0 to Garneau. Alexa
Gazzola was named player of the game
for her efforts on the field.

Sent into the Bronze medal bracket,
the Royals played the Algonquin
Thunder. Despite being in the Bronze
bracket, the Thunder were still a
dangerous team. They showed the
Royals exactly why early into the game,
picking up two goals in the span of five
minutes in the first half. It wasn’t the
start that the Royals were looking for.

Forced to play catch up for the rest
of the match, the Royals were always on
the back foot. All the Thunder had to do
was park the bus and watch the Royals
struggle, but, class to them, the Thunder
went out looking for a third. They were
never able to find the third goal, but
neither were the Royals. For the first
time, the Royals looked like they were
outclass as they dropped the game 2-0.
Sonali Dholliwar was named the player
of the game for the Royals.

Qa

Crowd experience
Back to ballin’
The Whitecaps: Vancouver's other iconic

team

And more!

Royals. The Royals capped the first half
off with a wonderful free kick taken by
Edris Najm to put them up 1-0.

While both sides pushed to score in
the second, it wouldn't be until stoppage
time in the goth minute that either
team would get anything. In a daring
move, the Huskies sent their goalkeeper
forward in an attempt to tie the game.
Ryo Mizuno made two huge saves off the
attempt to keep the Royals in the lead,
and Race Williams punished the move
with a swift counter. It would’ve been
a riot had Williams missed on the wide
open net after racing it down the field,
but he didn’t and the Royals finished the
game 2-0 and punched their ticket to the
gold medal match.

Unsurprisingly, awaiting them in
the finals were the host and PACWEST
rivals, the VIU Mariners. It was an
exciting game, but a drab affair. A
mistake early in the game cost the
Royals as the Mariners put one into the
net. With the lead, the Mariners did

  

With a medal out of contention,
the only thing left for the Royals was
a concession match to see who would
finish higher in the tournament. Credit
to the Royals, though. Where many
teams would just toss in the towel, the
team kept going. In a controversy filled
match against the GRPC Wolves, the
Royals emerged victorious with a 1-0
win. Michelle Wessa capped off her
career with another player of the game

 

nothing. Well that’s not exactly true,
they played well. They just parked the
bus and let the Royals run at them with
the ball.

In all fairness, excellent defence is
a strength. But in the gold medal final
of the CCAA National Championship,
nothing was worse than watch the
Mariners pass the ball amongst
themselves, waiting for time to
tick down. The Royals did have one
opportunity, and had seemingly tied
the game, but the referee called offside.
Unable to penetrate the Mariners wall of
defenders the Royals failed to equalize,
and dropped the match, 1-0.

The loss meant that the Royals
would be taking home silver, but for a
team that finished 5-5-2 on the season,
silver is quite the fine lining. The Royals
can be proud of what they've achieved
this season. The players and coaches
created something great, and no matter
what happens, they can be proud of this
moment.

award, and the Royals finished fifth at
the tournament.

Despite this being the team’s
worse finish in three years, the team
will look to this year as a growing
opportunity. Next year, the Royals host
the tournament, and the women have
a ticket into the competition. As the
Mariners showed this year, winning
on home soil is the best feeling in the
world.

via Douglas College Flickr

via Douglas College Flickr